


the color of roses

by saverockandbeebo



Category: 18th Century CE RPF, Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Alternate Universe - Flower Shop, Cliche, Cute, First Meetings, Flowers, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Gay, Getting Together, Hugs, Language of Flowers, Love Confessions, M/M, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, then again everything i write is cliche
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-26
Updated: 2018-06-01
Packaged: 2019-05-13 20:23:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,486
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14755694
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/saverockandbeebo/pseuds/saverockandbeebo
Summary: Two times Hercules visits the flower store down the street.





	1. fuck you

It was your typical mid-May afternoon in the _Coeur de Nature_ , that was for sure. The store was essentially silent, minus the whirring fans and the quiet classical music murmuring from the few speakers in the store, and Lafayette was the only one on duty. He slumped at the desk, water bottle in hand, and awaited the arrival of just one customer. He momentarily wished for it to be February again, otherwise known as the shop's annual pandemonium, but then realized the stupidity of the thought and settled for the thought of last week, the week of Mother's Day, instead.

With that thought, someone ( _finally_ ) came in. _Thank god_ , he thought, _I was going to die of boredom._ The customer seemed in no rush, or he just had a really good way of hiding it. Either way, he seemed calm as he glanced across the selection of flowers before him. Lafayette perked up at the prospect of some human interaction for once and asked if he needed any help. The man sighed. "Yeah, that'd be great," he said. "You're the expert, right?"

"Well, I wouldn't say-"

"You still know more about this than I do, so therefore you're the expert."

He probably was right in that respect, so Laf mentally brushed himself off and continued on.

"What do you need help with, then?"

"Well, um," the man started, his nervousness finally revealing itself, "it's my coworker's birthday tomorrow, and my friend is kind of forcing me to get him something. Thing is, I absolutely despise him. So-"

"You want me to help you make a 'fuck you' bouquet?"

The man looked shocked. "Huh? How did you-" 

"Seen it before. Let's get to it, shall we?" The customer, still in awe, could only nod and follow Laf into the rows and rows of flowers. "What don't you like about him?" 

"Well, he's annoying, he never waits for anything, he's loud and obnoxious, and I generally want him to suffer."

"I feel that," Laf said, though it was somewhat muffled by all the flowers in front of him. "So, we have impatiens for, well, impatience, foxglove for insecurity since that generally is the root to people like that, begonias as a 'back off' of sorts, a few black roses for this genuine hatred of yours, and," he said, sticking a final yellow flower in the bundle, "some marigolds for all the pain he's caused you. Sounds good?"

The customer nodded, eyes lighting up in delight. "Perfect! This'll be amazing!" He paid for his flowers. "Thank you so much, uh," he said, glancing down at Lafayette's name tag and stumbling on its pronunciation.

Laf grinned. "You can just call me Laf. The full name can be a pain sometimes. Let me know how it goes-"

"Hercules."

"Right, Hercules. Good luck!" As he walked out the door, Laf called out "Wait!" Hercules turned around questioningly. "Is he allergic to flowers too?"

Hercules only smirked, but that was all Laf needed. The man left a smile on his face all day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> pictures of flowers, in case you wanted visuals :)  
> \- [impatiens - impatience](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Impatiens_scapiflora.jpg%0A)  
> \- [foxglove - insecurity](https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwj1ztKr-qPbAhVIpFkKHWFsCQ4QjRx6BAgBEAU&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gardeningknowhow.com%2Fornamental%2Fflowers%2Ffoxglove%2Ffoxglove-flowers.htm&psig=AOvVaw28zq4FNOAURrWuHDqDBXVd&ust=1527443966973051)  
> \- [begonias - "beware"](https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https://www.thompson-morgan.com/product_images/100/zoom/z-BEGO-T58672-A_h.jpg&imgrefurl=https://www.thompson-morgan.com/p/begonia-sunburst-garden-ready/t58672TM&h=1000&w=1000&tbnid=iwNwVJH2vo3VLM:&q=begonia&tbnh=186&tbnw=186&usg=__Pcgvd3ebOlwG2MwgfvmZwslaBLI%3D&vet=1&docid=fXltCGur9Q6P1M&itg=1&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiIzLzu-aPbAhWnwFkKHW--CvsQ_B0I1QEwEg)  
> \- [black rose - hatred](https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwiOzbuF-6PbAhXvs1kKHeo-D_sQjRx6BAgBEAU&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.istanbulturkeybook.com%2Fmysterious-black-roses-of-turkey%2F&psig=AOvVaw0dnYljl7t0w1tSZb9ocwuI&ust=1527444146120604)  
> \- [marigold - pain](https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwiT0K3n-qPbAhVSzlkKHQ5RDGgQjRx6BAgBEAU&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.almanac.com%2Fplant%2Fmarigolds&psig=AOvVaw3ublCVCL87-2pCS1uNJPJv&ust=1527444081160385)  
> 


	2. like you

Lafayette did hear from Hercules again. (The annoying coworker graciously accepted the flowers and could easily be heard sneezing his lungs out across the office. Laf was glad they both found that funny.) He visited him almost every week, occasionally buying flowers, but usually just to chat with him about whatever was on his mind. The other shop employees simply let them do their thing, operating like usual with occasional knowing glances and smirks shooting their way. 

Laf found himself growing closer and closer to the other man, despite only knowing him for a few weeks. They told each other everything, even to the point that outsiders thought they had known each other their whole lives. In fact, Laf considered him his best friend.  _Best friend._ It was a heavy set of words in Laf's opinion, but it certainly fit their relationship. However, during Herc's last visit, something had dinged in his brain telling him that there just might be something more. Usually though, he had to push those thoughts away because they always came whenever he was in the middle of something (usually talking to Herc himself) and he didn't want to get distracted. 

It again was another slow afternoon when Hercules visited next. Laf could tell from the second he opened the doors that morning that business would be minimal. Then again, he met Herc on one of the slowest business days of the year, so maybe something else would happen. Sure enough, in walked Hercules, a big smile on his face as always. However, today's smile didn't look quite as confident and strong as usual; in fact, if Laf had to describe it, it looked shaky and timid, something Herc usually was not, as far as Laf knew. He mentally brushed it off. Maybe he's just tired. Or sick. Or something. Laf nonetheless greeted him as cheerily as usual.

"Hey, I need something for a friend. You think you can help?"

Laf smirked. "I don't think, I _know_. Fire away."

"Confessing love to a friend?"

"On it." Laf flitted through the aisles of flowers, searching for the perfect selection of flowers for his friend. The hopeless romantic in his heart sung that maybe this bouquet was secretly for him, but he, per usual, shook it off and continued looking.

After a few minutes, he returned to the front table where Herc was awaiting him with a soft smile. That was another thing Laf had noticed about him: albeit his muscular physique and stance, Hercules emotionally was a total softie. He was generally sweet, caring, and genuinely a good person. (Then again, they did meet due to Herc's desire to intentionally set off a coworker's seasonal allergies, but no one was ever 100% good or bad, were they?) It was definitely one of his defining qualities, and one of Lafayette's favorite aspects of him. 

Laf retrained his focus on the flowers in his hand. "So what we have here are some acacia blossoms for a secret love, white carnations for pure love, light pink roses for passion and desire, clovenlip toadflax saying 'please notice my affections,' and jonquil saying 'return my affections.' All good?" He noted that he sounded shaky, but he had no idea why. Maybe he was hungry or something. Either way, he needed to cut it out. He handed Herc the bouquet and started to ring it up.

"Laf?"

The man in question looked up. "Yeah?"

"I, um... They're, uh, for you."

"Me?" He was shocked.

"Yeah..." Herc looked ashamed. Laf suddenly wanted to cry.

Fortunately, he knew just how to fix this. "Can I run and get something really quick?" he asked, stumbling on his words. "Just... Promise me you'll stay right here?" Herc nodded. That was all Laf needed to take off into the flowers, searching for one specific one he desperately needed. He noticed that it had started to rain outside, the gray cloud dimming the lights for the raindrops' tap-dance recital on the burgundy awnings of his storefront. Fortunately, the flower was easy to find, and Lafayette quickly made his way back to the front with it, where Herc looked like he was about to either throw the flowers on the floor and run far, far away or burst into tears and crumble onto the floor. Laf quickly decided that the former was definitely the worse of the two, but either way, he wasn't going to let either thing happen. Not on his watch. He stood in front of the trembling man, took the bouquet out of his hands, put it on the service counter, and placed the delicate white blossom in his hands, enveloping them with his own. Slowly,  _slowly_ , he made eye contact with Herc's teary eyes.

"Do you know what this is?" He shook his head and unsuccessfully tried to choke out a 'no,' and Laf could practically see his heart fall out of his chest and shatter on the tile floor into a million tiny shards. "It's a rainflower. Y'know what it means?" Another shake of the head, this time accompanied by hot tears rolling down his face. "Shh," Laf soothed, rubbing circles on Herc's hands with his thumb, "You're okay, you're okay. The rainflower... it symbolizes returned affections."

The room was dead silent. "Laf..." 

"I love you too, Herc."

Herc engulfed him in a hug, murmuring 'oh my gods' and 'I love yous' into his shoulder. Laf could only rub his back softly. He noted that, although it was still raining a little bit, the sun had come out and was warming his face as it set between the trees. He closed his eyes and let himself drown in the moment.

Laf put the bouquet in his favorite vase as soon as he got back to his apartment. He puts it on his windowsill as a reminder of the best day of his life thus far.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i told myself that i would finish this over memorial day weekend but did that happen? no, of course not! bc when i give myself deadlines they never work!  
> there are no flower pictures right now bc i've had to write this chapter 3 times due to ao3 and my spotty wifi being a bitch  
> happy pride month!

**Author's Note:**

> okay so i.. ugh, i had a school project where you're assigned someone in your class and you have to choose a flower that describes them and i've been researching flower language all afternoon and this stemmed (no pun intended) from it?? so school inspired me??? that's a first lmao. but i figured it was time to join the club since everyone and their mom has written one of these lol  
> this is my first actual work with these two!! :D i love them to pieces and im thrilled to do this haha  
> all flower meanings used in this fic can be found [here.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plant_symbolism)  
> 


End file.
